ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

This is a discussion on ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$) within On buying a car, part of the Team-BHP Advice category; Originally Posted by thebfg
The car is not going to be used much, barely 15 kms a day and is ...

The car is not going to be used much, barely 15 kms a day and is going to be used for the school run. Should I upgrade or not?
Also I am planning to invest very little.

Considering the application you have mentioned, changing to a Civic is a completely illogical and meaningless move - sorry for being harsh
For school trips, you dont need anything more than a reliable hatchback, in my opinion. Engine, drivability and maybe even comfort should ideally rank low among priorities, for school runs - are kids going to be bothered about engine capacity, torque, power and drivability??

Thank you all for the suggestions. I agree with you all & I'm going to retain the Verna and get it fixed up. The broker quoted me less than 2 lacs, which in my opinion is too low. Get a racing chip and send it for servicing. I was a bit hesitant at sending it to the workshop because it would take a week, but I've got three more cars I can use (probably 2 'cause I'm not taking the Jetta to school). Thanks again.

Hi. Ive got a petrol polo 2011 with 30k on the odo. Im doing about 40k a day in bangalore with probably three 1000km long distance trips. Im just wondering if i should consider buying a 2nd hand diesel at this stage given the rising diesel prices. Very confused. If i sell the polo I would prefer getting an suv and hope to top up and have a budget of 5.5 to 6L for the next purchase. Please advise. Diesel or no diesel. I love the driveability and responsiveness of my polo and am very particular about this aspect of driving pleasure.

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Quote:

Originally Posted by GTO

When I last created a thread on retaining your 5 year old car (ARTICLE: YOUR 5 year old car : Keep, Upgrade or Swap?), most of you agreed on the sheer value of this proposition. After all, each additional year (after the 5th) that you hold on to your existing car results in huge monetary savings. Yet, some petrol-heads moaned “No GTO, we want to drive a bigger car. We want more power. We want safety features.” Then, some other BHPians went "But it’s been 5 - 6 years and we *want* to upgrade our car to something quicker. We are bored of our current drive.”

Well, I am not going to let you throw your money away just yet. Introducing the beauty of lateral upgrading! Lateral, by definition, means toward the side. On Team-BHP, the term lateral upgrading means to sell used and buy used. Its a fantastic way of getting substantially more car for not-so-much-more money; a transaction where the differential value is overwhelmingly positive in your favour. Net net, you get way more for way less. I want to show you how to upgrade your existing car, to a newer make, with lesser mileage, from a higher segment, with more power / features / safety....all at a fraction of the price.

Consider real world examples ]

Thanks GTO ,you woke me up!
I was in no mood to sell my 2008 swift vdi as I loved my first new car,yes it was my 3rd car but my 1st new car.I knew each nut and bolt of it.

But one fine day this thread came to my mind and started thinking, cutting the long story,I sold my 82k Kms done swift and bought a 2nd hand i20 crdi sports

It has done 35000 Kms and it's 2010 model ,best part ,I just paid 70k over my swift selling price
I just love the space and feature of this i20...thanks team bhp

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Quote:

Originally Posted by F150

If I sell my swift D at at 3.8 L. I have to invest close to 2.7 Lacs for this upgrade.

The gap between Diesel and Petrol it now about 10 Rs per km and my
daily run is about 25KM.
Is this a prudent decision ?

Absolutely not a wrong decision IMO.

As we all know that the previous gen Honda City has a more premium feel than the current one , you will certainly love the luxury and the 1.5 IVtec mill when compared to the Swift.

The City is not know to return great FE numbers , hence you may have some challenges physiologically during the initial days of the ownership when ever you take the car for a refill as you would have been used to paying less & driving more from many years.
However as the daily commute is not more than 25 Km this should not pinch you much , as eventually you will start enjoying the bigger engine & luxury which will take over your mind .

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Quote:

Originally Posted by shireeshjacobs

Hi. Ive got a petrol polo 2011 with 30k on the odo. Im doing about 40k a day in bangalore with probably three 1000km long distance trips. Im just wondering if i should consider buying a 2nd hand diesel at this stage given the rising diesel prices. Very confused. If i sell the polo I would prefer getting an suv and hope to top up and have a budget of 5.5 to 6L for the next purchase. Please advise. Diesel or no diesel. I love the driveability and responsiveness of my polo and am very particular about this aspect of driving pleasure.

The most sensible would be a switch to a top end diesel Ford Figo but if you must have a bigger car, then you could consider a Rapid, Elantra, Vento or even stretch the budget a bit for an Endeavor

Quote:

Originally Posted by F150

Dear All,

I own a JAN 2010.SWIFT D which has clocked 36.7 K kms
I am starting to get a little bored about the drive.

I want to own a big car which has more safety features and free revving without turbo lag.

I have been watching the classifieds and can see good examples of HONDA CITY S/V MT @ 20-35K Kms available at 6.5K.

If I sell my swift D at at 3.8 L. I have to invest close to 2.7 Lacs for this upgrade.

The gap between Diesel and Petrol it now about 10 Rs per km and my
daily run is about 25KM.
Is this a prudent decision ?

Unless you want a sedan, might I recommend the Skoda Fabia 1.6 fun to drive, balanced chassis, solid suspension, spacious and comfortable and the best bit is, you will spend only about half a lakh extra for the upgrade. If you don't like the idea, the City is a good choice too.

Jobs at Hand
> Painting for the Rear Right door and the panel following (The scratches are a result of some moron not knowing how to reverse into a parking lot and that annoys me the most)
> Bad engine mounts - Typical Civic 50000k Job

I will be addressing both the issues by October end, irrespective of my decision.

I love the Civic and see no replacement for the same unless I wanna add 5 lakhs to my budget. Hence I wanna keep the Civic, but was wondering if I could sell mine and get a post 2008 model (with better GC), in a better condition. I can also upgrade to a VMT, currently a SMT. That will also give me leather interiors.

I am ready to shell out another 75-100 K for the same.

What do you guys think? What should I expect for my Vehicle, after I do all the maintenance required.

There seems to be nothing wrong with your Civic. You can easily add the leather interiors yourself. There is no difference in the ground clearance of the facelifted Civic just that it had stiffer rear dampers.

However, if you are looking for another car, might I suggest buying a used Kizashi Being an owner I might be biased, but trust me I reviewed everything else in the market before buying one. The car is pretty cheap in the used market and should come for the same price as a facelifted Civic in good condition. The Kizashi also has the same ground clearance of 155mm, however the KYB shocks do a much better job of preventing it from bottoming out. The seats are far more supportive and comfy, the engine is far more powerful and comes with a nice soundtrack post 4k revs at the same time it delivers the same mileage as your Civic, the akebono braking components ensure extremely good stopping power, one of the nicer EPS units around, has loads more features and is one of the safest mid-size sedans money can buy. I understand you might have your apprehensions about the car, but if you do overcome those, shoot me a PM and I'd be happy to give you more details about the car, maintenance and things to lookout for as an owner.

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Looking on selling my Corolla for a used Cruze/Jetta or a new XUV (nothing else in the budget of ~15 lacs seems tempting). We do around 2500 km a month, so need a diesel AT. Almost purchased a Cruze in Oct '12 in Gurgaon, but then decided on going ahead with an investment. Now there's an itch again since the Corolla is more than 6 years old (though it is mechanically fit). The only negatives with the Cruze seem to be the rear space, but that shouldn't be much of an issue since only the front seats are occupied 99% of the time.

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Quote:

Originally Posted by prateekm

Looking on selling my Corolla for a used Cruze/Jetta or a new XUV (nothing else in the budget of ~15 lacs seems tempting). We do around 2500 km a month, so need a diesel AT. Almost purchased a Cruze in Oct '12 in Gurgaon, but then decided on going ahead with an investment. Now there's an itch again since the Corolla is more than 6 years old (though it is mechanically fit). The only negatives with the Cruze seem to be the rear space, but that shouldn't be much of an issue since only the front seats are occupied 99% of the time.

The Jetta is a lot more potent than the Corolla and a lot more fun to drive (so is the Cruze till you encounter a bend in the road and the car just understeers like a puppy on a wet floor ) and are definitely an upgrade in nearly every sense (Cruze's rear bench is actually quite sad) especially as a lateral upgrade HOWEVER, considering you are a corolla owner, please factor in maintenance costs, time spent waiting while the car is in the service center and headaches, to the overall cost of buying these cars

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

Quote:

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

The Jetta is a lot more potent than the Corolla and a lot more fun to drive
..
..
HOWEVER, considering you are a corolla owner, please factor in maintenance costs, time spent waiting while the car is in the service center and headaches, to the overall cost of buying these cars

Yes, the Corolla is boring to drive, which is exactly the reason why I'm looking to replace it with something much more fun to drive on my weekly Mumbai-Pune expressway drives. However, the only reason why I'm leaning towards the Cruze is that the maintenance costs would be similar to the Corolla (or maybe a bit higher, but surely lesser when compared to the Jetta).

Quote:

(so is the Cruze till you encounter a bend in the road and the car just understeers like a puppy on a wet floor )

He had quoted Rs. 6.75 L, and I could bargain and final price we agreed upon is Rs. 6.4 L. Guys, is this a good deal and should I go ahead and seal it?

He bought it for 8.5 ex-showroom and the Taxes were paid by Company. Thanks to the then upcoming facelift in 2011 end, he got nice discounts. Keeping that in view, he is getting really nice resale value @6.4.

Re: ARTICLE: The Beauty of Lateral Upgrades (Getting MORE CAR for LESS $$$)

I own a 2010 Ford Figo ZXi which I've bought new and had run 80K. Now the serviceing costs are going through the roof. My last service was 28k + body work. Current service estimate is 60k. Plus it's a TN registered car and I've recently relocated to Bangalore. Changing registration would cost ~65k.
My monthly running is about 3000-4000 kms.
I have 3 options:
1. Sell the Figo for about INR 3 Lakhs and buy a Safari Storme Lx or Vx. I've loved the Safari since I first saw it in 1998. But am worried about the reliability and service costs. A major facelift is expected. Plus my dad and wife cannot drive it. And loan will be tight.
2. Sell the Figo and buy a pre-owned civic. Again always loved the Civic. Can get a 2006-7 model for INR 5 Lakhs. So my cash outflow will be low. Or should I prefer a post 2009 model for INR 7.5 Lakhs?
3. Retain Figo. Spend INR 1.5 Lakhs and do up all the work and go for 15" alloys, music system upgrade, etc.

I've got about 3 weeks to make the decision. Any other suggestions are also welcome.